Gullah Geechee Tour 2015

In July 2015 Roots to Glory Tours will once again explore the history of the Gullah Geechee people of South Carolina. We will travel to Coastal Georgia, St. Helena’s Island South Carolina, Beaufort, Charleston and Sullivan’s Island.

The dates for this tour are July 6, 2015 – July 12, 2015. Please follow the link below to register for the trip.

http://fs25.formsite.com/rootstoglory/Gullah/index.html

Brought to the New World and forced to work on the coastal plantations of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, Gullah Geechee people developed a separate creole language and distinct culture patterns that included more of their African cultural traditions than the African-American populations in other parts of the United States. Gullah Geechee people retained many aspects of their creole culture due to the geographic barriers that isolated these sea island communities. Although Gullah Geechee people traveled between nearby islands and the mainland, few outsiders entered the Gullah Geechee communities, particularly after the Civil War. After their emancipation from slavery, the Gullah Geechee people’s isolation became more of a choice, as people returned to their homes, communities, and their way of life. In these rural communities, Gullah Geechee people continued their language, arts, crafts, religious beliefs, folklore, rituals and food preferences, and a strong sense of place and family. The Gullah Geechee peoples’ traditional economic practice of farming, fishing, hunting, and small-scale marketing of subsistence products also continue today, yet many areas that once supported these activities have been replaced by coastal development.

THE HISTORY OF THE GULLAH IN COASTAL SOUTH CAROLINA AND COASTAL GEORGIA 2015

TENTATIVE ITINERARY

JULY 6 – 12, 2015

The Gullah history is well known in South and North Carolina. Not many people know that Georgia also has a huge historical significance in the Gullah history. This particular Gullah tour is an opportunity to get to know that part of the Gullah culture.

This tour begins in Beaufort South Carolina. We will all meet at the Best Western. If you plan on staying elsewhere, please meet at the Best Western in the morning of the 7th to begin the tour of the Penn Center and St Helena’s Island.

Those of you needing transportation, there is space for 10 people in a van at $100 per person (it is first come first serve).

The cost of $175 for the tour includes:

A tour of St. Helena’s Island w/transportation

A tour of St Simons Island (including a down home BBQ) w/transportation

Ferry tickets to Sapelo Island – tour of the Island (including lunch on the Island) w/transportation

A tour of Charleston including Johns and Sullivan’s Island (with transportation)

*children are less expensive depending on their age, please contact me for details

The cost does not include:

Accommodations

Meals not included above

In anticipation of this trip, please review the following materials as we will be visiting some of the information provided.

Meet in Beaufort South Carolina (Best Western Inn Sea Island $129.99 – double – per night – call 843-522-2090 for reservations before June 6, 2015 as for the room block for Ada Brown and Roots to Glory Tours )

Arrival – check in hotel

Meet for dinner

July 7, 2015

Travel to the Penn Center/St Helena’s Island for a tour with Queen Quet